Early Language Q&A: My two year old child is not speaking yet

Question:

My two year old child is not speaking yet. Should I be concerned? My mother in law says that she knows many children who didn’t speak at all until they were three years old, and then they spoke in complete sentences. Does this mean that I should just wait and see if my child will talk on his own? Or should I get help?

Answer:

You should try to get him evaluated by a Speech-Language Pathologist (SLP). Children usually have at least 50 words in their vocabulary by 24 months of age. Those who don’t are at risk for further language delays, pronunciation problems and even learning problems. Your SLP can let you know if your child has any other risk factors that might make him at higher risk for language related delays. For example, if his father was late to talk, and went on to need speech therapy or learning assistance, then the child is at higher risk for language and learning problems than a child whose father was a late talker who went on to do very well in school.

As for the children who don’t talk until three years – in my experience it is rare that a child can make it to three without talking and have no ongoing effects (But it does happen). If you dig deeper you often find that there are social, self esteem and learning problems associated with these late talkers. Also, many SLPs in our province have long waitlists so it is best to get your child’s name on the list early if possible.